Keep close to nature’s heart…and break away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean. – John Muir, the Father of the National Parks
The beautiful words of environmental philosophers such as John Muir and Edward Abbey have always inspired me. As a kid and teenager I didn’t have many opportunities to go camping or hiking, but I romanticized the wild of America and it’s something as an adult I’ve loved exploring.
“The value of things is not the time they last, but the intensity with which they occur. That is why there are unforgettable moments and unique people.” – Fernando Pessoa
The trip started out with just myself and one of my closest friends, Leah. By day three there were four of us, and by the end we were a rag-a-muffin crew of ten. In the beginning, we were really intimidated of biking with anyone else. “They’ll be more experienced, we’ll just hold them back, but look at all their spandex!” Luckily, we quickly got over our own insecurities about being bike touring newbies because the people we met along the way are what made the trip what it was.
